Allardyce: fitness is key

  • by Staff Writer
  • Monday, 29th July 2013

Sam Allardyce admits that he is pleased with the progress made during West Ham's whistle-stop tour of Germany.

Despite opening the three-match tour with a disappointing 4-1 hammering at the hands of Bundesliga outfit Mainz last weekend, Allardyce's side regrouped to secure comfortable wins over Hamburg (3-1) and Eintracht Braunschweig (3-0) on Saturday afternoon.

Now back on British soil, Allardyce revealed that there were plenty of positives to take from the trip. "It was a good camp over the eleven days we were in Germany," he admitted. "We had good training facilities and a great welcome from everybody.

"Because of the weather we were able to focus on having two or three sessions a day. In the end that should stand the lads in good stead for the start of the season on 17th August.

"The change in fitness over the last five years has been one of the biggest improvements of football in the Barclays Premier League. You can see the increase in the physical activity that a player has to reach in a game of football from the stats that are gathered.

"That fitness is the first part of our training in pre-season, to get that level as best we possibly can, and then from here on it's more about the technical and tactical side, mentally switching the lads on.

"Those who are better prepared mentally and physically get the early results that you need and when you get the early results you can see what benefit you get."

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